Christy Kyser Truitt, a Demopolis native, has been writing since she was seven years old. She remembers writing her first stories with crayons, carefully drawing out dialogues boxes for each of her characters. Now she can proudly say she has two published novels to her credit.

For her, the talent of writing has lead her on a journey the former Miss COTR 1987 and Marengo County Junior Miss 1988 never thought she would be on.

Her second novel, &8220;Where the River Bends,&8221; was written almost simultaneously with her first novel, &8220;Serenity Point,&8221; which was released last year.

Three and a half years ago, she and her husband decided to have their fourth child. It was then Truitt realized she couldn&8217;t work full time and raise another child. This gave her the time to do some writing.

She describes her first novel as somewhat autobiographical, which she says is not uncommon for first time authors, which have to &8220;write what (they) know.&8221; But her second novel is something entirely different.

When asked about her writing habits, Truitt said she would love to be a structured writer who has a routine to follow, but she said that would have to wait until her children are older. For now, she settles for scraps of paper in her purse and every spare moment she can find to be on her laptop.

When asked where she gets her ideas from, Truitt said they are from all over.

Her own favorite authors are Southern &8212; including Pat Conroy and Margaret Mitchell. But she said she is always looking to read things of different genres. One of her new favorites is an Auburn writer, Patti Callahan Henry.

Truitt said she is always looking to improve her writing, by branching out and trying new techniques.

She also plans to make visits back to her hometown to do a signing for her latest project.

Kelli Wright is the staff writer for The Demopolis Times. She can be reached at kelli.wright@demopolistimes.com